Manila – The Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF) Local Fiscal Policy Service (LFPS) OIC Director Brenda L. Miranda shared the BLGF mandates and its roles in the approved Devolution Transition Plan and the proposed Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform (RPVAR) bill at the DZRH News, entitled “DILG sa DZRH Breaktime”, on 19 April 2023, livestreamed via Facebook.

In the said program, Director Miranda underscored the BLGF functions in implementing Executive Order No. 138 s. 2021 through building the capacities of the local government units (LGUs) to determine their priorities in the absorption of the devolved functions and managing the National Tax Allotment (NTA).

“The NTA is beyond the control of LGUs. They need to concentrate on local revenue sources and assistance from the national government, especially in capacity building to manage their funds. This is in collaboration with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and BLGF Regional Offices as partners in addressing the challenges of devolution,” Director Miranda said.

Director Miranda also highlighted the updates on the President’s key priority legislative agenda, the passage of the proposed RPVAR bill, which aims to develop a single valuation base for taxation purposes, and benchmark for other real property-related transactions. The said bill is currently pending in the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, which held its TWG meeting last 13 April 2023.

Dir. Miranda further discussed the status of the bills on Income Classification and Mandatory Property Insurance. The proposal under the Income Classification Bill includes granting authority for the Secretary of Finance to set income targets and undertake periodic reclassification of LGUs every three (3) years, which was approved by the House of Representatives on 14 March 2023 and is currently pending and being deliberated in Senate of the Philippines. In addition, Dir. Miranda mentioned the proposed Mandatory Property Insurance bill that aims to mandate all provinces, cities, and municipalities to insure all government properties and provide insurance coverage to properties with insurable interests with the Government Insurance Fund.

Furthermore, the LGUs’ mandate to create sources of own revenues pursuant to the Local Government Code (LGC) of 1991 by utilizing the local economic enterprise and exploring alternative sources in funding development projects through borrowing from government and private financial institutions was discussed in the said program.

Moreover, the BLGF is said to issue the Certificate of Net Debt Service Ceiling and Borrowing Capacity (CNDSC/BC) to LGUs based on the collection efficiency and shares from the national government.